THE JOURNAL
Until not long ago, the long-sleeved T-shirt lived quietly beneath other things – occupying the category of layers that you put on for warmth and rarely thought about again. But the return of the early-2000s wardrobe has brought it back to the fore. Worn on its own, it now does the work of a considered outfit. And it does so with very little effort required from you.
The easiest way into it is to layer short sleeves over long, which a couple of well-known, unpretentious dressers such as Jeremy Allen White and Jacob Elordi provide ample inspiration for. The principle is simple. Keep the under layer fitted at the arm, let the outer tee fall loose from the chest and allow the cuffs to show. Or just get this two-in-one style from Cherry Los Angeles. As for the shades, we’d suggest keeping to a tonal palette, with cream over white or grey over black, for results that look considered rather than studied.
A stripe gives a plain long sleeve a point of difference, without the presence of a logo. Choose stripes of different width – and at varying distance between one another – or a narrow stripe in two muted tones, such as navy and ecru or grey and white. Keep the cotton substantial enough to hold its line at the shoulder. Wider, bolder stripes read as sportswear, but narrow ones are more contemporary, allowing you to wear something a bit smarter down below.
Elsewhere, a more lived-in version is cut from heavy cotton jersey and washed until the colour gives up. Black turns charcoal and navy turns slate. Worn-in, washed denim, an oversized shirt and a long sleeve in the same state of repair belong in the same world. Buy it dark and let it fade, or buy it already softened. Either way, pair it with straight denim or pleated trousers and let the thick cotton do the talking.
The sportier of the four is the T-shirt with raglan sleeves, where the seam runs diagonally from collar to underarm and the sleeves are rendered in a different colour from the torso. Grey with navy – as is the case with this WTAPS® style – or something bolder, like Acne Studios’ bright red and off-white version. Choose a relaxed fit rather than oversized and keep it out of gym-wear territory with tailored trousers and loafers.